Allure
by Scarpaw
Summary: She seemed like a Siren, alluring and capable of leading sailors to their deaths. Bakura wasn't sure if she really was a Siren, but he was absolutely sure that she was doing something to his hikari. And only he's allowed to mess with his hikari.
1. Stuck Rings and Chipped Bracelets

Oh my god. My first actual (original) Yu-Gi-Oh! fic that isn't a one-shot! Smile for Paw-Chan now! ^_^

This is going to be a RyouxOC fic, bu don't worry, there is a good reason for it. And, sorry in advance, I'm horrible at writing relationships, and also this chapter probably sucks. Sorry. It will get better, promise.

"We talk like this..."

'...And think like this.'

_This is a mystery thing that Paw-Chan has no name for yet._

Read and enjoy the first chapter of _**Allure**_!

**Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh**

_She stared at it for another moment, almost like she was debating about keeping it or taking it and throwing it out into the harbor. After a moment, she sighed a bit guiltily and opened the white jewelry box sitting on her vanity and dropped it into the box, closing it and locking it before hiding it underneath the floorboards of her room where it would never be found again._

_Or so she hoped._

**Chapter One: Stuck Rings and Chipped Bracelets**

A girl sighed as she walked the desolate halls of a school. The bell for class had long since rung, yet she wasn't in a classroom yet for the sole reason, she was lost.

The girls' hair was a midnight black color, and her eyes were a deep royal blue. The top part of her hair was pulled back, held by an alligator clip, falling in curls upon the rest of her hair. She wore a standard girls' uniform- a long sleeve pink jacket with white shirt and big blue bow as well as a pleated blue skirt. Her shoes were the standard indoor ones given to you by the school, and her socks were the also standard white knee high socks.

The only thing that wasn't standard about the uniform was the thirteen bracelets on her wrists.

There were six on her left arm, all with different designs and different colored wood. On her right was seven bracelets, all pine wood and lacking a design on the surface. It was almost as if the ones with designs had been specifically crafted by someone, the designs were so intricate. One had dolphins jumping out of the water, maple; another had lotus blossoms, sandalwood.

A black bag hung from her shoulders, a wooden key chain in the shape of a hand mirror hanging from the end of it. It was unpainted, and clicked soundlessly against the bag.

The girl sighed again, her head turning as she stopped and studied the hall.

"'Let's move to Japan!' she says," The girl muttered darkly under her breath as she continued her aimless wandering of the halls, half-hoping a teacher or someone would spot her. "'It'll be fun!' she says, 'They have great schools!' Yeah, great schools to get lost in! I don't even know where Class B is!" Not watching where she was going, the girl noticed the person in front of her too late, and the two teens collided.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Ryou was jolted out of his thoughts as he was knocked to the floor, papers flying to the floor.

"I'm sorry," Were the immediate words to come out of his mouth, and to his surprise, it was what the other person said. He and the other person scrambled to pick up the fallen papers. The effort was in vain as the two knocked into each other once again, papers scattering.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" The other person said, female Ryou could tell by the voice. Ryou lifted his head to actually look at the person he had run into and found that it was really a girl, one with midnight black hair just as long as his, and royal blue eyes. Bracelets adorned both her arms.

"I'm such a klutz!" The girl continued, and went to pick the papers up again, yet when she went to move her right arm; she found that she wasn't able to move it very far. Ryou also found that out, as his head was suddenly jerked forward, and he found the Millennium Ring hanging outside of his uniform instead of underneath. That was weird… Ryou didn't remember pulling the Ring out. In fact, Ryou never wore the Ring outside his clothes- only the spirit did that.

One of the several bracelets that hung on the girls' arms had somehow managed to get itself caught on the Ring, leaving the two stuck.

"Sorry!" The girl apologized, her left arm moving to try and free her bracelet. Ryou's hands moved subconsciously, helping her free it. There was an awkward silence between the two, the only noise was the clinking of the girls' wooden bracelets, and the sound of wood against metal.

Finally the silence was broken by the girl.

"Um, I'm Helena," She introduced herself. "I just moved here from Tokyo…" Helena drifted off, nibbling on her lip. She had never been quite the people person.

The awkward silence returned with vigor as neither kid knew what to say. Finally, after a few minutes of useless clicking of wood against metal, it was broken again.

"I-, well, I'm Ryou. Ryou Bakura." You said a bit awkwardly, and Helena nodded and flashed a smile at him.

"Ryou." She said, testing the name, smiling as she did. "I like it." There was more useless clicking of wood against metal as they tried detaching the bracelet from Ryou's Ring.

"Stupid bracelet." Helena muttered darkly, retracting her hand for a moment to see if Ryou could get it by himself without her help.

His effort was just as useless as their combined one. The only thing Ryou actually succeeded in doing was making a chip in the bracelet.

"I'm sorry," Ryou apologized as they both looked at the chip, but Helena only shook her head.

"No, it's alright." Helena told him. "It was bound to happen sometime." The silence returned as the two continued to try and get the bracelet detached from the Ring.

"Um, why don't you just take the bracelet off?" Ryou asked finally, and Helena smacked her forehead.

"Why didn't I think of that earlier?" Helena berated herself before flashing Ryou a smile. "Great idea." If Helena saw the blush that crept up onto Ryou's face, she ignored it as she grasped the bracelet firmly with her left hand and twisted her wrist a bit to allow it to slip out of it.

The wooden bracelet fell against the Ring, clicking three times before finally clattering to the ground.

Both kids blinked dumbly at the bracelet, similar thoughts running through their heads. The thoughts were the standard, 'Idiot, why didn't you think of that earlier?' thoughts.

Sighing, Helena reached over and scooped up the bracelet, and examined the chip that had been caused by Ryou in his attempt to remove it. Her finger traced the curve delicately, as if she was trying to find something hidden in plain sight.

"I'm sorry," Ryou supplied once again, watching as Helena examined the chip. Helena just shook her head again, and slipped the bracelet back onto her arm.

"Like I said before," Helena flashed another smile, scooping up a handful of papers. "No harm done." Helena straightened the stack of papers and handed them over to Ryou.

Ryou took them, adding them to his stack of papers that he had, and the two stood up.

"I… I should get back to class," Ryou said finally, and Helena nodded. "Bye… Helena." And Ryou was gone.

Helena stood in the hallway, watching Ryou's retreating back until he had disappeared.

"Well," She said half to herself. "He is _kinda_ cute."

It was then she realized that she forgot to ask if he knew how to get to Class B.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Yeah, the chapter title is probably horrible, and I also have no clue whether Ryou was part of Class B or Class A, so we're going to go with Class B until someone corrects me.

And yeah, I was listening to My Chemical Romance when I typed the last part, and I forgot what I was going to originally call Helena, so I just named her after the song Helena by MCR.

So, yeah...

Please Read and Review and tell me what you think!

~~Paw-Chan Signing Out~~


	2. Suspicions

Uh... Sorry for the wait? This chapter's actually been done for a while now, it's just the fact that I haven't wanted to post it for the fact of editing it. Again. And Again. And Again. And Again.

This chapter has Bakura in it! ^_^

I will be using english names, and all the characters will make short appearences, though who stays as a major part is still up for debate. Besides Ryou and Bakura, of course.

Now the chapter!

**Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh**

_A girl leaned over the edge of a boat, looking down into the murky depths of the water. She held something grasped in her fist as she leaned, glaring at her reflection in the water. Her reflection smirked at her, knowing that she couldn't do what she wanted so desperately to do._

_She raised her fist and pulled it back. The girl threw it first, but just as she went to uncurl her fingers and send the item flying, something stopped her. She brought her hand back over onto the safety of the boat, and unclasped her fingers as she stared guiltily at the item. As much as she wanted to get rid of it, she couldn't._

_She just couldn't._

**Chapter 2: Suspicions**

Bakura lingered in the hallway in spirit form, watching the girl his hikari had just met watch him walk down the hall. There was something off about that girl- what had her name been? Hell-something? Bakura hadn't really been paying attention.

Whatever her name had been, Bakura could tell something was off about her as he vanished back to his soul room to think more.

Had Bakura been anybody else, he would've thought nothing of the girl. But, being him, Bakura knew better than that. She had attracted the attention of the Ring, and it took very powerful magic to do just that on its own. The Ring normally only reacted to the Items, or somebody's name when Bakura told it specifically that he was looking for someone. The Ring rarely ever acted up on its own.

Thus, Bakura's suspicion.

Yet, there was nothing Bakura could do without arousing the attention of the Pharoah, so he had to settle for waiting in his soul room and peering out of Ryou's eyes, waiting for a glimmer of the mysterious girl that had attracted the attention of the Ring.

Lucky for him, he didn't have to wait all that long.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

They were halfway through Algebra when there was a knock at the door. As it was just a review lesson, most of the kids had been half asleep, so the sudden knock at the door had startled them. Other's who had been paying attention weren't so startled but they were just as curious as to who was knocking in the middle of class.

The teacher told whoever was at the door to come in, and the door slid open to reveal a girl that looked very familiar to one Ryou Bakura, who was sitting in the fifth row of the second column of desks.

"Um, excuse me," She asked. "I'm a bit lost. May you please direct me to Class B?" Snickers erupted through the class as Ryou looked a bit closer at the person.

Helena. That was Helena! Ryou realized as he looked at the girl. She was definitely Helena- Ryou had only seen her for those few moments in which her bracelet had gotten stuck onto the Ring, but he still recognized her. That was Helena.

"This is Class B," The teacher responded. "Why?" Helena nibbled on her lip.

"Well, I'm new here and I was told I'm in Class B. I haven't been able to find Class B." She answered, blush dusting her cheeks as kids in the class snickered.

"You're Helena Keisei?" The teacher asked, and she nodded. "You're very tardy Helena." Helena hung her head, ashamed.

"I know." Helena replied meekly. "It's just the school is so big- the last school I went to was a lot smaller." The teacher ignored her.

"You'll be sitting next to Yugi Muto for the semester Helena. Yugi, stand please." The teacher requested and Ryou heard a chair just behind him scraping as the person at the desk stood up. That was right- Yugi sat almost directly behind him.

Helena walked down the aisle of seats, her bracelets jangling as they bumped against the desks. The teacher muttered something about 'kids and their ethnic jewelry' before starting the lesson again after Helena had been seated.

Partway through the second half of class, whispering met Ryou's ears from behind. It was Joey. He should've figured that Helena would get picked up into their group.

"Hey, Helena, right?" He whispered to her. Helena nodded absently, her hands moving her pencil as it aimlessly doodled in her notebook.

"Yeah?" Helena answered absently, flicking the tip of her pencil absently through one part of her drawing.

"What's up with all those bracelets you wear?" Helena's eyes flickered to her bracelets, but before she could reply back the teacher had heard him.

"Joey! Pay attention!" She reprimanded. Joey flashed the teacher a sheepish smile and scratched the back of his head as he apologized.

"Sorry teach." He told her, and she gave him a look that clearly read, 'don't-talk-again'. Helena stifled a giggle as she went back to her work, trying her hardest to concentrate on her work.

Yet, her thoughts always found their way parading back to a certain albino she had met that morning…

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Helena sighed as she walked down the halls, trying to find the lunch room. In the rush of students trying to get to lunch, she had been swept away from Joey, who had announced himself as her self-proclaimed 'tour guide' so she wouldn't get lost anymore. Naturally, as was her luck, she had not been able to find Joey again.

Or the albino boy from earlier- Ryou, had that been his name? Yes, that was it. Ryou. After seeing him in the classroom, Helena had sorely regretted not asking him for directions to Class B. But, there was no use crying over spilt milk.

Wrapped in her thoughts again, Helena didn't notice the person in front of her until it was too late and she was on the ground. Shaking her head and blinking, she found herself looking up at the person she had just been thinking about.

"Sorry," Helena apologized, accepting Ryou's hand as he helped her to her feet. "I wasn't paying attention." Ryou shook his head.

"It's alright. I wasn't paying attention either." Ryou offered a small smile, which Helena returned serenely.

"I should go now…" Ryou said after what seemed to be a few minutes, and started to walk past Helena. She was just about to let him past when Helena remembered her predicament, and she whipped around and snatched Ryou's wrist.

"Wait!" Helena called loudly, even though it was useless seeing as Ryou had already stopped and she had a hold of his wrist.

"Yes?" Ryou answered patiently, surprising Helena as she let go of his wrist. Normally people would get mad at someone for doing that to them… Maybe Ryou was different? Anyways.

"Well, um," Helena blushed. Ryou raised an eyebrow and Helena sighed. "I'm kind of lost. Do you think you could take me to the lunch room?" Ryou looked a little startled at the request, but nodded. He started past Helena, and the girl turned around and followed after Ryou.

The walk was silent and could almost be called awkward. Neither one seemed to be the one who wanted to engage conversation. Finally, Ryou spoke.

"What happened to Joey?" Helena blinked.

"Joey?" She repeated, and Ryou nodded, slowing his pace a little so they were walking side by side.

"Yeah, the guy who said he'd be your 'tour guide'?" Ryou reiterated. "Did you get separated?" Helena nodded and threw her arms behind her head, bracelets jangling as they hit each other.

"You could say that," Helena answered. "When we got released for lunch I kind of got pulled away by the crowd." Ryou 'hmmed' and nodded and the silence was back again.

Ryou opened his mouth to speak again, but he was interrupted by the bell, signaling lunch was over.

"Darn," Helena pouted, stomach grumbling. "I missed lunch." Ryou laughed a little at Helena's reaction, and Helena giggled a little too.

"Oh well," Helena shrugged it off, before clasping her arm around Ryou's. "Mind walking me to class? I don't think I'd be able to find my way back."

If Helena had noticed the surprised look on Ryou's face, or the red starting to gracefully dust his cheeks, she took no heed of it.

"N-no not at all," Ryou stuttered softly, leading the way back to the classroom.

Meanwhile, one yami was mulling new thoughts over in his soul room.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Helena Keisei. That was her name, Bakura acknowledged as he went over the things he had learned over the past hour.

Keisei… Didn't that mean something like 'Sire' or something in Japanese? Oh well. Bakura had never been very good with foreign languages, like Ryou or the Pharaoh's mini-me.

Bakura _assumed_ the girl was alright, so he raised no protest when his hikari met up with the girl for the second time that day in the hallway. She seemed innocent, and Bakura found no reason to think otherwise about the girl, much to his dismay.

To be honest, the only reason Bakura was skeptical about the girl was because of her bracelets. Yes, that may seem silly, but it was because of those bracelets. There was something unsettling about them, something that seemed familiar. It was like Bakura knew what they were, but at the same time he didn't.

As his hikari retreated towards his seat in the back of the class room, it could've been a trick of the light, but Bakura could've sworn the girl stared straight at him.

Vanishing back within his soul room, Bakura decided to keep an eye on this 'Helena Keisei'.

For now, anyways.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

That was Chapter 2, And, I do realize they are in Japan, I'm just editing things for this story to work. At the end with Bakura- sure his hikari knows Japanese, but Bakura's knowledge is limited. I'll eventually tell you guys what Helena's last name means, but if anybody wants to guesss you can.

I have no clue when Chapter 3 will be up because I have a ton of other stories to work on, as well as the fact that I'm starting school tomorrow and Tennis opens for me tomorrow as well.

Please read and review and tell me what you think!

~~Paw-Chan Signing Out~~


	3. Talks, Walks, and Reminders

Well, here's Chapter 3 of _**Allure**_! This chapter has the rest of the group in it, and I hope you like it! ^_^

_/Bakura to Ryou/_

_(Yami to Yugi)_

Yandounishi- Landlord

Aibou- Partner

**Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh**

_A fish blubbed its way through its fish bowl, oblivious to the scene laying before it. The owner of the small angelfish was hanging from the ceiling, eyes void of all life. The girls' hair was all matted, and blood seeped lightly from her open mouth._

_Two days later, the angelfish will die and be thrown down the toilet. The dead fish will then make its way to the ocean where its corpse will be eaten by a salmon. Three weeks later, that salmon will be caught by a small fishing boat. The salmon will be gutted, and in its stomach a little girl will find a beautiful, unpainted charm…_

**Chapter 3: Talks, Walks, and Reminders**

"So where did you move from Helena?" Amethyst eyes sparkled with enthusiasm as a small group chatted with Helena towards the end of school when they were given free time to converse with one another.

The group was none other than Yugi Muto, Joey Wheeler, Tristan Taylor and Téa Gardner. And, also, unknown to Helena, Yami.

"My mother moved me here from California." Helena's tone was bored, like she spoke of this all the time. "She's a director. She doesn't like me being left at home alone all that often, so she drags me along when she has to go out of country for films and such."

"What about your dad?" Yugi asked, leaning on his desk. Helena gave an airy laugh.

"That's a laugh." Helena told them. "My dad ditched my mother and me when I was nine. Haven't heard from him since." A few eye brows furrowed, and Tristan was the first to speak.

"Yeah, but don't you ever wonder how he's doing?" He asked, and Helena shook her head.

"Not really." She answered lightly. Helena started toying with her bracelets, mainly spinning the closest one to her wrist on her right arm.

"What happened to your bracelet?" Téa inquired, and Helena paused briefly to look at her bracelet before continue spinning it.

"Apparently, I chipped it." Helena's tone was level and cool, like her bracelets were a taboo topic. Téa gave a soft, 'ooh', but before she could ask anything further, Helena had spoken up.

"Do you guys know anything about _him_?" Helena's question was a bored tone, like she was just asking for the hell of it. Her hand was lifted, and was pointing at one boy specifically.

That boy was Ryou.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

It was free time during class. School was almost over, so it wasn't like it really mattered to Ryou or anything. Just free time for him to get a head start on his homework.

And, of course, eavesdrop. On his defense, it wasn't like he did it on purpose or anything, not at all. It just sort of… happened. It wasn't his fault that some of the kids talked like they were about to go over a waterfall.

Of course, that is how Ryou inevitably overheard one conversation in particular.

The one between Yugi and his friends and Helena.

"Do you guys know anything about him?" The question had been posed by Helena, Ryou identifying from the fact that only she was a girl amongst the group besides Téa, and the voice didn't sound like Téa's.

"Who?" Joey. Definitely Joey. From a different station amongst his ears, he caught wind of another interesting conversation, but Ryou's attention was kept firmly on this one for some odd reason.

"_Him_." Helena sounded irritated. Though, talking with Joey, one couldn't blame them. Ryou knew that although he could probably count all the times he had talked with the blonde on one hand, that didn't make it any easier to talk to him, Yugi and company around or not. "The albino."

Ryou felt himself stiffen. They were talking about him? That was just his luck. Yugi and them were probably going to tell her to stay away from him.

There went his only chance at getting a real friend out the window.

But then again, with a yami like Bakura, he probably deserved it.

/_I heard that yandounishi._/ It wasn't meant to be rude, but Ryou knew that is was his yami's way of letting him know that he was listening. /_Besides, I don't see what's so great about that girl anyways._/

Ryou tactfully chose to ignore his yami, opting to tuning back into the conversation. Nothing good would come out of arguing with Bakura anyways- just a headache.

"…Bakura?" Ryou heard Yugi question as his ears perked back to the conversation.

"Bakura?" Ryou could hear the confusion in her voice. "He told me that his name was Ryou…" If the group was shocked, Ryou couldn't tell.

"Well, yeah, but we call him Bakura." Tristan, definitely. Ryou briefly wondered what they'd tell Helena if she asked why they didn't call him by his first name. He didn't think that Helena would be one to believe a 'voice in my head' story.

"Why?" There was the question.

/_Wow yandounishi. You must be so proud of yourself. Ever consider a career as a psychic?_/ Bakura's voice echoed sarcastically through Ryou's mind.

Once again, Ryou chose to ignore Bakura.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Is it one of your Japanese customs?" Helena inquired, eyes flitting back and forth between the members of the group. She watched as their eyes looked back and forth from one another as if they were trying to agree with some sort of story.

"Heh heh, that's right," Yugi gave an innocent smile, and Helena flashed one back before firing off her next question.

"Then why aren't you called Muto?" She inquired innocently. "Or Tristan as Taylor?" The group looked like deer caught in headlights, yet no one seemed to want to make the first move.

"Ah, well," Joey attempted. "You see…" Then Helena's voice came, surprisingly quiet.

"You don't like him. Right?" Her voice was startlingly quiet, as well as cold.

"That's not true!" Yugi protested. "It's just that we… have conflicting interests." Within Yugi's mind, a voice chuckled.

('_Conflicting interests', aibou? That's a wonderful understatement._) Yami prodded Yugi, but said nothing else. Helena blinked.

"Oh. Well then…" But whatever she was about to say was lost in the ringing of the bell and the sudden clap of thunder as rain continued to pound against the windows. It had started to rain after lunch, and it seemed like it wanted to migrate to a thunder storm now.

"I'll see you later." Helena stood up from her seat, dusting non-existent dust off of her uniform skirt. She picked up her bag, key chain clinking as she made her way out of the room.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Of all days to forget his umbrella, it had to be today. Ryou stared up at the blackened sky, flinching as lightning flashed brightly against the black sky and thunder screamed hardly half a minute later. He stood underneath the roof of the school that covered the outside steps, hoping uselessly that the storm would stop or at least lull enough to allow him to make a break for home.

"Stranded?" Ryou jumped, startled, turning to see Helena standing next to him, looking up at the sky with wide eyes, bag and a black umbrella hanging from her hands. Her head came down and she looked at him, eyes closed, flashing one of her smiles. "If you'd like, you can share my umbrella."

Ryou, startled as he was, stumbled to find something- anything -to say.

"I- uh, well… I…" Ryou stumbled over his words, and Bakura wasn't helping any.

/_What, startled by a pretty face yandounishi?_/ Bakura cackled at his hikari's reaction.

"Sorry." Helena apologized. "I didn't mean to surprise you." Ryou shook his head.

"It's alright," Ryou finally managed.

"So?" Helena turned so her left side was facing the rain.

"Hmm?" Ryou asked, turning so his right side was facing the rain. "So what?" The umbrella was in between them now. Helena laughed and shook her head.

"I asked you if you wanted to share my umbrella, silly." Helena gave an airy laugh as Ryou blinked a bit bewilderedly. "I mean, I understand if you don't want to… I just figured that since it's raining and it doesn't look like- you know, anyone's coming for you and you obviously don't have one of your own…" Ryou turned his head away from Helena as he debated. Sure, he could turn the offer down, but then he'd feel bad because Helena would probably be sad.

/_Just say no and get it over with already!_/ Bakura snapped, Ryou jumped slightly at his yami's tone of voice, but Helena seemed to take no heed.

Opening his mouth, Ryou answered.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"So, this is where you live Ryou?" Helena turned, facing Ryou as they stood at the bottom of the steps that led to the door to the apartment complex that Ryou lived. Ryou nodded.

"Yes." Was his reply, and Helena's short response was,

"Cool. I guess I'll see you tomorrow?" The question was innocent enough, but it was still enough to cause Ryou to freeze.

"Uh… well…" Ryou scrambled for words for what seemed to him to be the millionth time that day. "I don't know." Helena's face fell, and Ryou felt like smacking himself. "Maybe?" At that word, the girl perked back up.

"Promise?" She asked.

"Err… well," Ryou cursed himself for getting himself into this situation. He should've just said no in the first place and been done.

"Yeah." He finally sighed. "I promise." Ryou offered a weak smile.

"Here," Helena said, maneuvering the umbrella to her shoulder while she pulled one of the bracelets off of her arm. Looping one finger through the bracelet, the umbrella was returned to her hand before the bracelet was offered to Ryou, and placed in his hand.

"What's this for?" He asked, confused. Helena smiled and winked.

"Just so you don't forget your promise," She smiled, and turned and left Ryou, heading on her way back home.

Looking at the bracelet in his hand, Ryou sent one fleeting glance where Helena had been before he hopped up the steps to the interior of the apartment complex before heading in himself and making his way up to his apartment.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

So, yeah. Chapter 3... How did you like it?

Please read and review and tell me what you think!

~~Paw-Chan Signing Out~~


	4. Of Paintings and Charms

And I'm back from my long walk off a short pier! I'm glad you like the story so far, and I love the jokes you guys are cracking with the title of the story! ^_^ You guys make me giggle.

_((Yugi to Yami))_

_(Yami to Yugi)_

_//Ryou to Bakura//_

_/Bakura to Ryou/_

_Aibou- Partner/Soulmate_

_Yandounishi- Landlord_

_Mou hitori no boku (sp?)- My other self_

And onto the chapter! ^_^

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.**

_She strutted down the halls of the school. She was the queen, she was the ruler of this place. No one could stop her. She could have any guy she wanted, and there was one guy in particular she had her sights on._

_Of course he was too easy for her to pick off. She needed someone a bit harder. Someone who wasn't putty in her hands._

_Then she spotted her prey, passing her without so much as one look. It was a guy who she knew wasn't felling head over heels for her._

_Smirking, she tossed her hair and shouldered her bag, and walked after the boy, keychain clinking on her bag._

**Chapter 4: Of Paintings and Charms**

"It'll be only for an hour. Please Ryou?" They had some free time at the end of class again, and Helena had opted to spend the time with Ryou surprisingly, instead of Yugi and company.

"I don't know…" Ryou replied, and Helena frowned.

"Please?" Her eyes were pleading. Helena's bracelets clinked against the desk as she laid her hands on the desk. "I haven't had anyone willing to let me paint them in a while. Please Ryou? You only have to stay for an hour. I just need a preliminary sketch then I can do everything else without you." Ryou bit his lip while Helena pouted.

"I'm not sure about this." Ryou said.

"Come on Ryou!" Helena pleaded taking his hands up into hers. "One hour and then you don't have to do it again. Please?" Ryou bit his lip.

//_Do you mind yami?_// He asked his yami, not knowing how Bakura would feel if he accepted without his permission.

/_As long as it gets the girl to shut up, I don't care yandounishi._/ Was Bakura's irritated response. Ryou sighed.

"I guess," He sighed, watching Helena's face light up like a Christmas tree. "But only for an hour."

"Of course, only an hour Ryou." Helena smiled, releasing Ryou's hand and leaning across the desk to give him a hug. In Ryou's mind Bakura stiffened, but Ryou didn't notice. "I promise you won't regret it!"

The bell chose to ring at that moment, and the two gathered their stuff up and left the class room.

In Ryou's backpack, the bracelet that was given to him yesterday by Helena jarred heavily against one of the books, creating a new chip in it.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

((_Something wrong mou hitori no boku?_)) Yugi asked Yami at his locker once school was done. The once-Pharaoh had a look on his face that signaled something was up as he looked down the hall, standing by his hikari in spirit form.

(_Just thinking aibou._) Yami's response was distracted. Yugi knew something was up with mou hitori no boku, so he peered past the door of his locker and looked in the direction that mou hitori no boku was looking in.

Spotting Ryou and Helena, Yugi ducked his head back into the safety of his locker door.

((_Why are you spying on Ryou and Helena mou hitori no boku?_)) Yugi asked, his head peering out from behind his locker door again. Ryou seemed to be wrapped up in a conversation with Helena, and he seemed happy enough.

And Bakura was nowhere in sight.

(_I'm not spying on them!_) Yami protested indignantly, tearing his eyes from the two to look at his aibou. Yugi laughed as he went back to putting his books into his locker.

((_Sure you weren't mou hitori no boku._)) Yugi poked at Yami, pulling his shoes out of his locker. He looked down the hall once more and waved at Ryou and Helena who looked down his way before switching his school shoes for his street ones(**1**).

Placing his shoes back into his locker, he shut the door and took the initiative and walked over to Ryou and Helena.

"Hey Yugi," Helena smiled, holding her bag in front of her as she looked down upon him.

"Hey Helena, Ryou." Yugi smiled brilliantly back. "The others and I are going to the arcade. Do you want to come?"

"Sorry Yugi." Helena's voice replied flawlessly. "Ryou and I have plans. Maybe next time?" Yugi frowned. Of course he expected Ryou to deny- he always did, but Helena? She didn't seem like the type to refuse any invitation.

Then again, she did say she and Ryou had plans…

"Really?" Yugi asked, curious, and Helena nodded, smile still fixated on her face.

"Yeah," She nodded. "He's letting me do a painting of him after school. Maybe I could do you sometime Yugi? I'd love to have a try at painting someone with hair like yours." Helena laughed as Yugi's face burned red, and even Ryou cracked a smile.

"Well, we should get going," Helena told Yugi. "It was nice chatting with you."

(_Well she's right with one thing aibou._) Yami laughed at Yugi who was still flushed red.

((_What?_)) Yugi asked, Yami still laughing.

(_An artist would just love to try painting your hair._) Yami laughed as Yugi flushed red once more.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"You painted all of these?" Ryou inquired, looking at the paintings hanging on the walls. Helena shook her head.

"Not all of them." She replied. "Just the ones with the people." There were only three paintings with people.

One was pictured in Paris, France, obvious by the boy leaning against the Eiffel Tower with a cocky smirk on his face. Another was a boy pictured in the USA standing between the Twin Towers, his hands resting on the points. The third was in New York, the boy leaning with his back against the Statue of Liberty.

"Do you want anything to drink?" Helena asked, bringing Ryou back to reality. He shook his head.

"No thank you," He answered. Helena shrugged.

"Alright." Helena said. "Do you want to just get on with it?" Ryou nodded.

"If you don't mind."

"Not a problem." Helena traipsed past Ryou to a closet down the hall. She opened the door and pulled out an easel.

"Do you want to pull over that wooden chair?" Helena asked Ryou, indicating towards a chair against the wall. Ryou pulled the chair over as Helena set the easel up and set a sketch pad on it. She grabbed a stool and a pencil before setting the chair up before the easel.

"Sit," Helena ordered Ryou, pushing him lightly backwards to the chair. He did so as Helena took her perch on her stool and started telling Ryou little things.

"Ryou could you fold your hands on your- yes, just like that!" Helena smiled brilliantly. "Tilt your head to the left a little bit- right there! And, hold that position please." And silence filled the room with the only real sound being the scritch-scratching of Helena's pencil on paper.

/_I can't believe you agreed to do this yandounishi._/ Bakura grumbled, appearing out of the ring in spirit form. Ryou frowned mentally, keeping his eyes schooled in front of him. Neither noticed Helena's eyes flicker towards the vicinity that Bakura was in before going back to Ryou.

//_You said you didn't mind yami._// Ryou reminded his dark gently just before the scratching of Helena's pencil paused for a moment.

"Ryou, I just remembered." Helena's voice broke through the silent room. "You still have my bracelet."

"Do you want me to get it?" Ryou asked, and Helena shook her head, eyes going back to the paper.

"Nah." She told him. "Not know. I don't want to lose this pose."

"Alright." Ryou replied.

The silence continued for a bit until a shock went through the room.

It wasn't a real shock that the humans could feel, but it was a shock that Bakura felt loud and clear. He jumped in shock, appearing out of the ring once more.

Ryou didn't notice him this time, and Bakura didn't care in the slightest.

What had shocked him… It was almost like shadow magic. It had the same initial make up as the shadows, yet it was still slightly different. Bakura didn't like it one bit.

/_Yandounishi._/ Bakura's mental voice was commanding. /_Tell your little girlfriend that you have to go._/ He was ignored.

/_Yandounishi!_/ Bakura shouted, standing in front of his hikari, waving his hand in front of Ryou's face.

Ryou didn't blink; he only kept staring ahead of him like nothing was wrong. The only sound other than Bakura was the sound of Helena's pencil.

Eventually, that stopped as well. Helena stood and flipped the sketchpad shut.

"Well, you're done Ryou." Helena smiled, tucking the sketchpad under her arm and picking the easel up. "You can go now if you want."

Just as quickly as it had come, the magic was gone. Ryou blinked, and jumped slightly at the sight of his yami in front of him.

//_Y-Yami?_// Ryou stuttered a bit surprised in his mind.

"Ryou? Didn't you hear me?" Helena's voice echoed as she popped her head back into the living room. "You can leave now." A smile was on her face. "Now shoo. I'm sure you have better things to do than stand in my living room."

"R-Right." Ryou blushed. "I'll see you tomorrow then." Ryou started for the door, but by then Bakura had had enough and shoved his hikari out of control.

He stomped to the door and wrenched it open and slammed it shut. Ryou flinched as Bakura made their exit, disappearing down the hall.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"My, my." She mused to herself. "Someone's in a bad mood, aren't they my little host?" She chuckled as she looked at the painting standing in the middle of the table.

A face, twisted in fear, could do nothing but stare helplessly up at her captor.

"Nonetheless," She was practically singing. "We will have him trained soon enough. He may not have put the bracelet on _yet_, but he soon will." Her eyes were gleaming.

"And when he does," She purred. "Nothing will stop me."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

So, both Yami and Bakura know something is up. But, who will act first? And who was that at the end?! Oh, alright, I know, it's easy if you've been paying attention.

Next chapter introduces another character! Everybody's favorite Egyptian: Malik! XP I'm not sure if Marik is going to make an appearance yet or not...

Oh well. Please read and review and tell me what you think!

~~Paw-Chan Signing Out!~~


	5. Possessed Bracelets and Blonde Egyptians

And I'm back with the fifth chapter! The pace is picking up, and the antagonist (should) be revealed in maybe? two to three chapters. And there will be a Shadow Game towards the end of the story. ^_^ Please read the chappie!

**Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh**

_The charm hung from her neck, as a necklace. She sat, waiting as she hoped her (boy)friend would arrive soon. They were to go see a movie that had just came out together, but he wasn't there yet. He came a few minutes later, and they went into the movie._

_During the movie, she kissed him on the cheek before returning her attention to the screen. When the movie ended and the lights came up, he wouldn't respond._

**Chapter 5: Possessed Bracelets and Blonde Egyptians**

Bakura stormed down the sidewalk towards his hikari's apartment furious, hands stuffed in his pockets, Ryou's backpack slung over one shoulder. While Ryou didn't understand completely why his yami was so mad, he was smart enough to leave Bakura alone for a while.

Bakura stormed angrily up the stairs to his hikari's apartment before storming through the door as well and slamming it shut so hard the pictures on the walls rattled. Ryou flinched at the abuse the door received by his yami, but said nothing. He didn't want to get Bakura even angrier.

Not wanting to get yelled at by Bakura, Ryou disappeared into his soul room and shut the door. He prayed that Bakura wouldn't mess the apartment up _too_ badly.

Bakura sighed and chucked Ryou's backpack to the ground as he heard his hikari's soul room door shut. He hadn't _meant_ to scare Ryou off, honestly. It was just that he was _so_ frustrated. Nothing about that girl Helena was making sense.

There was that bracelet, and then that shock of magic that he had felt at the girls' own apartment today.

And speaking of the bracelet… His hikari had forgotten to return it. And that meant he had free reign over it seeing as Ryou hadn't returned it and he had shut himself into his soul room.

Slinking over to where he had _discarded_ his hikari's backpack, Bakura knelt down and started rifling through it. He knew the bracelet was somewhere, but where? Finally, Bakura found it, nestled between two thick textbooks.

Fishing the bracelet out of the backpack, Bakura studied it to find that it had not the one crack it had acquired from the Ring, but _three_. Three chips and cracks in it. But how? His hikari's books weren't that heavy…

Glaring at the bracelet as if that would solve his problems, Bakura dropped the aforementioned item as if he had been branded by a red-hot iron when he felt a shock course through it. As it clattered to the floor, Bakura stared a bit dumbly at it. That shock… That shock had been something akin to the shock he had felt back at that Helena girls' house.

Kneeling down, Bakura picked the bracelet up and studied it. It _seemed_ harmless enough, but Bakura knew looks could be deceiving. Still, he put the bracelet on his wrist.

The reaction was instant.

It was as if liquid metal was poured on his arm and then slowly peeled off in the most excruciating way possible. Bakura prided himself in not flinching, bearing the pain until it slowly burned away like a dying ember.

"What the hell?!" Bakura hissed once the sensation had passed, looking at the 'harmless' bracelet on his right wrist. That bracelet was anything but harmless.

Putting his left hand on the bracelet, Bakura went to remove the bracelet. However, before he could he withdrew his hand hissing pain and stuffing it into his mouth.

The bracelet had burned him! That Ra-Damned bracelet had burned him! The stupid thing was possessed. How else could it burn him?

"Fuck!" Bakura cursed, a realization dawning on him. That foreign magic! Of course, that had to have been what had caused the bracelet to burn him. The bracelet was some sort of channel for that magic!

Heading for the door, Bakura made to go to the one person who he knew would have a better understanding of what had gone on in Egypt after his sealing into the Ring.

Opening the door, Bakura didn't expect who was on the other side.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

((_He doesn't look very happy to see us._))

(_When has Bakura ever looked happy aibou?_) Yami smirked mentally to Yugi whil he stared down Bakura. Bakura's mouth twitched as he struggled to find something to say before settling on spitting out,

"Pharaoh." In a dangerous tone. Yami smirked for real.

"Theif." Yami called back. "You don't look to happy to see me."

"What the hell do you want?" Bakura spat, one hand on the door frame, the other hanging at his side. He glared down at the shorter figure.

"I'm sure you've noticed something is up with Helena." Yami said easily, like he got looks that screamed 'Murder!' everyday.

"And?" Bakura asked, sorely tempted to slam his hikari's door in the bloody Pharaoh's face.

"And," Yami started, before noticing the chipped bracelet on Bakura's wrist. "You put the bracelet on?"

"What of it?" Bakura spat, dropping his arm from the door frame and pulling the sleeve of his hikari's shirt down to cover the accessory.

"I thought even you would be smart enough to realize that whatever is up with Helena has to do with her bracelets Thief." Yami noted. "And yet you still put one of them on?" Bakura pushed past Yami, shutting the door to the apartment.

"Your point is?" Bakura snapped, irritated. What was the Pharaoh here for? To point out the obvious? "Really, if all you're going to do is point out the obvious to me, I must ask you to leave."

Not waiting for an answer, Bakura pushed past the former pharaoh and started down the hall.

"Theif! Don't walk away while I'm talking to you!" Yami shouted, furious.

Bakura smirked and kept walking, not bothering to answer the Pharaoh. Too easy was it for Bakura to rile him. Besides, he had bigger fish to fry than the midget Pharaoh.

"Theif!" Yami was following him now. Bakura stepped into the nearby elevator, smirking, hand in one pocket, the other resting on the 'CLOSE DOOR' button.

Bakura waited until Yami was nearly to the elevator before promptly pressing the button his hand was on, causing the elevator doors to shut in Yami's face.

Whoever said it wasn't fun tormenting the Pharaoh?

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

He had effectively ditched the Pharaoh, and now he was stalking the streets of Domino.

Bakura was set on finding Malik. He knew the blonde Egyptian would know much more than him of what had transpired in Egypt after his sealing into the blasted Millennium Ring. If anybody, surly the Tomb Keepers would have documents of magic that was similar to that of the Shadows.

Turning the corner on the block, Bakura stopped abruptly as he spotted two people before him. Grimacing to himself, Bakura turned back around the corner to make his way through the alleys to get to his destination.

Stupid Pharaoh and his mini-me. Always sticking their noses in where they didn't belong.

Oh well. At least the Helena girl was making herself useful to him for once.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

((_Why are we going to see Malik again, mou hitori no boku?_)) Yugi inquired, floating along next to his other self as he strode dutifully down the street. Yami paused for a moment in his walking to look at his aibou.

(_Because aibou,_) Yami explained. (_He'll probably know more about this than us._)

((_Oh…_)) Was all Yugi offered in response as Yami started walking again. Neither was sure of where Bakura had stalked off to after ditching them, but Yami had a nagging feeling that Bakura was probably going after Malik as well.

"Yugi?" A sweet voice called from behind the two. Yami turned at the call of his aibou's name, to face Helena.

"Helena." Yami acknowledged his aibou's friend. "Do you need something?" Helena stopped a few feet away from the two, and nodded as she laughed a bit nervously and scratched the back of her head.

"Actually, yes." She replied. "I'm looking for Ryou, have you seen him? He wasn't at his apartment when I stopped by." Yami raised an eyebrow.

"Why are you looking for Ryou?" Yami asked Helena, curious.

"…Something." Was the wary reply Helena gave Yami. "Since when did you call Ryou by his first name? Just the other day you were calling him Bakura." Yami smirked while chuckling inside his mind.

He had to give Helena credit for the attempt. She had made a daring attempt to change the topic of discussion, and had he been anybody else, he probably would have fallen for it. Still, the once-pharaoh decided to humor her.

((_How charitable you are, mou hitori no boku._)) Yugi teased, having heard the last of Yami's thoughts.

"Is it a crime for people to change?" Yami looked at Helena, his tone almost patronizing, yet teasing at the same time. Helena laughed as she shook her head, midnight locks swaying from side to side.

"No, I suppose it isn't Yugi." Helena laughed lightly. "So, where are you going? I thought you and the others were going to the arcade?"

"I needed to speak with Bakura, so I left early," Yami replied easily, not missing how Helena's eyebrows raised at the name.

"Bakura? Ryou? Bakura?" She questioned. "Honestly Yugi, you are making my head spin. Will you please decide whether or not you're going to call Ryou by his first name or not?" Without waiting for Yugi to answer, she spun on her heel and stomped off with a flourish that only females were capable of.

((_I think you offended her, mou hitori no boku._)) Yugi finally said after Helena had disappeared from sight, and Yami only sighed as he continued on his way.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Those damn blonde Egyptians. When you want to find them, you can't find them and when you don't want to find them, _they_ find _**you**_.

Maybe that's why when Bakura had given up on finding the blonde in the museum, Malik had found him after Bakura had been wandering aimlessly around the exhibits for half an hour.

"Bakura? What are you doing here?" Bakura swiftly turned his attention from the ancient necklace he had been thinking about stealing to face the blonde Egyptian.

"Malik." If Malik had been daring enough, he would have said that the thief had been surprised. Yet, he decided that as amusing as it would be to see the thief's reaction, he really wanted to live to see another day.

"What are you doing here?" Malik repeated his previous question, wondering if the thief was going to grace him with a response.

"I need your help."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

*Backs away from sporks and flamethrowers* Uh... There was Malik! See, I kept my promise! He was in this chapter! *squeak* Don't hurt me!

Read and Review and tell me what you think!

~~Paw~Chan Signing Out~~


	6. Interrupted Conversations

Hey, I'm back! ^_^ I'm sorry for the long wait, I have had a lot of stuff to do, and I still have a lot of things to do. Expect sporatic updates, because I have alot of things coming up in the next month and a half or so. District Band Auditions, County Band Concert and Practices, Play Rehearsal and Show, Basketball, and yeah. Not sure when free time fits in my schedule for writing and updating. But fear not, I will make time if I have to!

But, for now, enjoy Chapter 6 of Allure.

**Disclaimer: Nope. I still don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. Maybe next time?**

_She gave a predatory smile as she walked off with another girls' man. Honestly, if they weren't going to keep an eye on them, why have the men with them? Everybody knew how easy it was for men to get… lost._

_Of course, she'd return him once she had had her fun. Not that there'd be much left for his once-girlfriend anyways. _

**Chapter 6: Interrupted Conversations**

"What do you mean, you need me help?" Malik grinned, ready to milk this for all it was worth. If he had the 'almighty' Ring spirit asking for his help, he sure as hell was going to make this as humiliating as possible for him.

"What does it sound like, you-" Bakura started, but before he could finish the rest of his threat, he was cut off.

"Ryou! There you are!" It was Helena. Bakura grimaced, an action that didn't go unnoticed by Malik, before shoving his hikari back into control. Bakura didn't want to deal with Helena.

Malik grinned like the Cheshire cat as Ryou blinked a bit, trying to make himself aware of where he was. Where had the spirit gone and left him?

"Malik?" Ryou almost took a step back when he noticed the blonde Egyptian in front of him.

"The one and only," He replied with a bored tone, pretending to examine his fingernail.

"So this is where you were Ryou!" Helena crowed, popping up at Ryou's side. Malik raised an eye towards Helena, before mouthing something that Ryou assumed to be, 'Who is she?'

"Y-You were looking for me Helena?" Ryou asked instead, ignoring Malik. He didn't know what his Yami wanted with Malik, but Ryou decided he'd rather not know. Ignorance is bliss, they always say.

Yeah, I was," Helena nodded, a smile perched on her face. However, anything else she was about to say was lost as she noticed Malik.

"Hello," She smiled, her voice sugary sweet. "Are you one of Ryou's friends? I'm Helena; Helena Keisei." If Malik seemed shocked by her last name, he hid it surprisingly well.

"Yeah, I'm one of Ba-Ryou's friends." He replied breezily, starting to say Bakura before switching. He offered one of his hands for Helena to shake. "Malik Ishtal." A dark look appeared on Helena's face, and she refused to take Malik's hand.

"It's nice to meet you," She finally conceded, the smile reappearing on her face. "Are you originally from Domino?" There was silence, and when it seemed obvious that Malik wasn't going to grace Helena with a response, Ryou answered for him.

"No," Ryou answered. "Malik's originally from Egypt. Cairo, isn't it?" Malik still didn't speak again, but he did nod for Ryou.

"Egypt, huh? That's cool." Helena said unenthusiastically. "Ryou can I talk with you? In private?" She shot a glare towards Malik, who returned it. However, he just waved the two off.

"Go Ryou. _We'll _have our talk later." Malik waved his hand in a dismissing motion as he turned to leave. Ryou got the underlying meaning of what Malik said- he wanted to talk to Bakura for some reason.

"Let's go!" Helena hissed, tugging on Ryou's arm and dragging him out of the museum.

Ryou said nothing, just kept mute, flinching only slightly as Helena's bracelet caught against the edge of the door to the museum, causing it to chip again. Wait- since when had he been wearing Helena's bracelet?

/_Since I put it on, yandounishi. Have a problem with it?_/ Bakura's voice echoed down the mind link. Ryou resisted the urge to physically shake his head as he replied with,

//_No yami. Why did you put it on?_// The question caused Bakura to bristle, and Ryou unconsciously flinched.

/_You don't need to know why yandounishi,_/ Bakura finally answered, and Ryou didn't press the spirit of the Ring any further.

"So what did you want to talk about Helena?" Ryou asked, turning his attention on the girl beside him.

"Talk about?" Helena said a bit surprised. "Oh right! Dang, I forgot. Heh, sorry Ryou." Ryou smiled softly to the girl.

"It's alright," Ryou replied. "We all forget things." Helena shook her head.

"No it isn't alright! This was really important to!" Helena let out an exasperated sigh. "And I even dragged you away from your friend too just to forget it! I really am sorry Ryou!" Helena groaned as she brought her hands to cover her face.

"Really, it's alright Helena, honest." Ryou said, trying to keep his voice level. He had no clue how to act around girls, and Ryou didn't know what he'd do if Helena broke down right there!

"Alright," Helena sighed, bringing her hands down and dropping them to her sides, allowing Ryou to let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. "I'll see you later Ryou!" She bounded down the steps of the museum and skipped down the street, pausing briefly to wave bye to Ryou and say hello to Yugi as he walked up to the museum.

Yugi smiled as he noticed the albino at the doors of the museum.

"Hey Ryou," Yugih smiled and Ryou smiled back.

"Hello Yugi." Ryou responded politely. There was silence between the two before Ryou finally said,

"I should probably go now." And before Yugi could say anything, Ryou had already bounded down the steps and started off down the sidewalk.

Yugi stood at the bottom of the steps to the museum, watching as Ryou walked in the opposite direction of his apartment, following the same steps that Helena had took a few moments before.

As Yugi watched Ryou walk off, he had to wonder to himself one thing. Wasn't Ryou's apartment in the other direction?

_**X.x.X.x.X**_

Bakura pounded at the door to his Soul Room. He wanted out, for Ra's sake! He still needed to talk to Malik, but his yandounishi wouldn't relinquish control to him. Bakura had been locked in his Soul Room.

That was odd though. Bakura knew that Ryou didn't have spine enough to lock him in purposely. So was this all an accident? Did yandounishi unknowingly lock him in his Soul Room when control had been switched?

No, of course not. That would have been too simple. As Bakura laid his hand on his Soul Room door, palm flat, he knew much different magic was at work, sealing him in. _Something_ didn't want him around presently.

And Bakura had a feeling that he wouldn't like what would happen if he wasn't around for whatever he was being kept out of. Well, whatever was keeping Bakura out made the mistake of locking him in his Soul Room. Oh well- it was a mistake they would pay dearly for.

Calling upon the Shadows, Bakura drew them forth, ready to blast his Soul Room door off its hinges.

_**X.x.X.x.X**_

So, how was the chapter? Good, I hope. And yeah, I know I changed the Scene Change symbols. I got bored of the old ones (they were too plain for me).

Please read and review for Paw-Chan!

~~Paw-Chan Signing Out~~


	7. The Truth Is Beneath The Facade!

Hey! I'm back finally with lucky number seven! ^_^ I bet you're happy I finally updated, huh? ^___^ Well, no use keeping you waiting- here it is!

**Disclaimer: Only own idea. Everything else belongs to their respectable owners.**

_The time was starting to run thin. Sure, her bracelets almost were complete, but there was the fact that they were starting to catch onto her. She wouldn't be able to keep this charade up for much longer. She only had two choices. Run, or fight and win her way to freedom._

_Her choice was obvious._

**Chapter 7: The Truth Is Beneath The Façade!**

If Bakura was anybody else, he probably would've winced as his Soul Room door slammed into the wall across the hall. But as he was not, he just ignored it and stormed out into the hall. He didn't want that girl hurting his property. Only he was allowed to do anything to Ryou- not anybody else.

Storming down the hall towards his hikari's soul room, Bakura froze in front of Ryou's Soul Room door.

There were cracks all over the door.

_**X.x.X.x.X**_

Now why were there cracks all over his hikari's door? He'd been to his hikari's Soul Room several times before and not once had it been cracked like this. Not only that, but it seemed like these cracks weren't… normal, to say the least.

The cracks were green, not normal for the plain wooden door that was the door for Ryou's Soul Room. That, and Bakura could feel it oozing the magic that had held him in his own Soul Room earlier. Going to open the Soul Room door, Bakura found that it was sealed shut the same way that his had been.

Of course, he could easily blast it open like had done with his own door, but something stopped him. It was a foreign emotion, something that Bakura hadn't felt before. Guilt, maybe? Whatever it was, it sent Bakura grumbling as he slunk back to his own door-less Soul Room. If he couldn't force his way into Ryou's Soul Room, he'd have to settle with looking through his eyes and observing what was going on like a spectator- not that he was particularly thrilled about it.

_**X.x.X.x.X**_

"Yugi?" Malik had just stepped out to see if he could catch Bakura and find what he had wanted to talk to him about and he stumbled upon the exact opposite of who he was looking for. "What are you doing here?"

Yugi turned around and Malik found himself not looking at the innocent amethyst eyes of Yugi, but the regal crimson ones of Yami.

"Yami?" Malik asked, a bit confused, keeping his voice down.

"Malik," Yami addressed him. "I need to talk to you." Malik's eyes narrowed. He had a feeling he knew what it was about, judging by how Bakura acted earlier.

"Let's walk and talk," Malik said finally after a moment's pause. He didn't wait for Yami's response as he hopped down the steps to the museum and sauntered out the gate.

_**X.x.X.x.X**_

"Helena?" Malik asked. When Yami nodded, Malik sighed. "Yeah, I know her. Just met her a few minutes before I saw you. She said she was looking for Ryou." The two stopped as the light at a crosswalk turned red. A few moments later and it was back to green.

"There's something off about her," Yami looked Malik straight in the eye. "Surely you could tell." Malik nodded.

"I did." He told Yami. "And it seemed that Bakura wasn't too fond of her either. Don't know why- she was as pleasant to me as he is to you." Yami gave a scowl at Malik's comparison.

"Anyways," Yami started. "I believe that she may be of a time period in Egypt after the Items were sealed away. What do you think Malik?" Malik paused, thinking. He noticed that they had unwittingly made it to the docks.

"It is a possi-" But the rest of Malik's sentence died off as he noticed something happening on the docks. It didn't take long for Yami to notice either.

"That's Ryou!" Malik exclaimed, and Yami added in a calmer tone,

"As well as Helena." Before Yami could say anything to stop him, Malik had raced across the concrete towards where the two were. Yami ran after the blonde, knowing full well that the situation could take a turn for the worse.

_**X.x.X.x.X**_

Bakura slammed his fists on Ryou's Soul Room door. He needed control of the body now, and he didn't care what measures he took to gaining control. Especially with him still blocked.

Bakura backed a little ways across the wall before running full force and slamming his shoulder into the door. It gave away to the force and Bakura stumbled into the room. Upon observing the room, Bakura cursed.

Almost the whole entirety of Ryou's Soul Room was littered with green cracks. In the corner of the Soul Room, Bakura noticed Ryou. Scowling, it took Bakura all of three steps to cross the room to his hikari.

"Yandounishi!" He snapped, shaking the prone form of his hikari. Shaking slightly, Ryou lifted his head up to look at his other. His face was ashen gray, and his eyes looked sunken, like he hadn't gotten enough sleep. But that was silly. Bakur ahad just seen his hikari a little while ago, and he had looked perfectly healthy.

"Y-Yami?" Ryou asked, blinking a bit, looking at Bakura. His voice was shaky. "Wh-What's going on?" Ryou shivered. "I feel weak…" Bakura growled. How could he be so stupid? That girl- she was obviously some sort of witch! And he just willingly let her near his hikari! He might as well have said, '_Go ahead, I don't care what happens to him!_'

A voice laughed, a girlish giggle throughout the Soul Room.

_Why, my dear Thief King, that is exactly what you did!_

Bakura bolted upright, running around, shielding Ryou with his body, like the voice would materialize and attack him.

_Aw, _She crooned in a sickeningly cute voice. _How cute! He's protecting his little other! Why don't we have a chat, King of Thieves._ He obviously didn't have a choice. Preparing to take over the body, her voice stopped him.

_No. Leave the boy in control. _Bakura scoffed, but reluctantly did so. He had no choice after all- he had seen Ryou's Soul Room, and she obviously had something to do with it. And Ra be damned if anything happened to his hikari.

So closing his eyes, he let himself appear out of Ryou's body in spirit form.

_**X.x.X.x.X**_

"Helena," Bakura growled, appearing in spirit form next to Ryou. Ryou, acquiring control as well, stumbled, and Bakura held out a hand to help steady him. He was just as pale as before, if not worse.

"If," He snarled. "That really is your name." Helena gave a false laugh.

"So you figured it out?" 'Helena' laughed. "What I really am, I mean? If so, bravo, I thought you weren't smart enough for that."

It took a second for the insult to fully process. However, before Bakura could say anything, there was a blur of what he assume was a blonde Egyptian trying to tackle Helena.

Note the word 'trying'.

_**X.x.X.x.X**_

Yami had to give it to Malik- with that form, he could've probably taken down the school's three hundred pound senior quarterback. Helena, though, made it seem like he was a three year old fighting with his eleven year old sister, who was keeping a toy away from him. She waved her hand at him, and he was sent flying back- into Yami.

"Aw," She crooned. "That's so sweet! The little Thief King actually has some friends! How cute." Her tone stated otherwise however.

"What do you want with them?" Yami asked, his tone demanding an answer. He skipped over the question of how she knew that Bakura was the Thief King.

"Isn't it obvious your highness?" Helena laughed, turning towards Malik. "Perhaps the young Keeper here would like to enlighten you."

Malik, however, blinked uncomprehendingly, like he couldn't even fathom what he was seeing.

"Keisei…" Malik mumbled. "You're the Siren…" Helena laughed.

"Yes, young Keeper," She laughed. "I am the Siren."

"The Siren?" Yami looked towards Malik, as did Bakura.

_((The Siren?))_ Yugi asked Yami. _((What are you guys talking about?))_

"Why, little Yugi," Helena's voice cut into the conversation. "Didn't you ever hear the legend of the Siren?" Yugi nodded, having taken control of the body when Yami wasn't looking.

"Yeah." He said. "It's about a girl who sings and leads sailors to their deaths. It's said that she causes the sailors to see their hearts desires, and they drown trying to make it to where her voice is coming from." Malik nodded grimly while Helena smirked. Yugi continued.

"But aren't Sirens supposed to live on an isolated island?" He asked. "I mean, sure, Japan is an island, but it would be pretty noticeable if all of a sudden people started drowning." Helena laughed, but before she could speak, Malik cut in.

"She's a different type of Siren." Malik stated, and Helena nodded.

"Alas, it is true," She spoke, "My sisters may belong to the sea and the water's, but I, I belong to the land- the sands, to be more precise. While I have Water Siblings, I'm a Siren from the Sand."

"She's a Siren who leeches off of her victim's feelings and affections." Malik explained. "Her prowess was known even back in the Pharaoh's time." Yami nodded, having snatched the body back. "She claimed many victims before she was found out."

"And you know what they did?" Helena's voice cut through them. "The Priestess of the Pharaoh- Lady Isis, if I remember correctly -she locked me away. Into a charm. Of course, it had to be her, as the Pharaoh didn't want any of his people near the 'beast' as he so charmingly called me." Helena smiled- it wasn't the one Yugi knew, the innocent one like Ryou's. It was more predatory. "Of course, the priestess knew that women wouldn't be affected by her charms. So she challenged me to a duel."

"And you lost." Malik interrupted Helena. "Soul sealed away for eternity. But that doesn't explain how you're here right now." Helena smiled, eyes laughing.

"Doesn't it?" She asked. "In order to free myself from the curse, I need the souls of thirteen people- males, to be exact. And look here, I have seven souls taken! You four will make it so I only need two more, and what better way than taking the souls of the Pharaoh's male friends as well?" Yugi did a quick count.

_((But wait!)) _He protested to Yami. _((She only has six bracelets with patterns and there's five of us!))_ Helena laughed.

"So you figured out that the patterns are the souls I have taken?" Helena grinned, fingering her bracelets almost lovingly. "Correct, each one of these has a soul in it. But five of you? I don't know…" Her tone adopted one of mock-worry. "Your little friend looks a little pale. Almost… as if one… _little_… _**kiss**_ will blow him away."

Helena leaned towards Ryou, and Bakura vanished into thin air just as Malik jumped to tackle Helena. He, however, was too late as Helena's lips made contact. There was a flash of green light, and the bracelet on his wrist crackled and seemed to break. He swooned and fell back, hitting the ground hard.

Helena took no notice as she knelt down, pulling the bracelet off his wrist. Examining the design, she slipped it onto her left arm. Stepping away from Ryou's prone form, Malik flew past her, tripping over Ryou's unconscious body.

"Who's next?" She laughed, looking between Malik and Yugi before snapping her fingers, vanishing into thin air as if she was smoke.

Who's next indeed...

_**X.x.X.x.X**_

_Keisei- Siren_

So, there's Chapter 7! ^____________^ I hope you guys all liked it!

And... uh... please don't kill me for what happened to Ryou?...

Read and review and tell me what you think!

~~Paw-Chan Signing Out~~


	8. The End is Approaching

Hoshiz! Could this actually be? An honest to God update? Quick, you need to pinch yourself and make sure you aren't still asleep and this is one wild dream that you got while smoking the hookah with the caterpillar on the tie-die mushroom in Wonderland while waiting for the croquet game between Alice and the Queen!

... On second thought, why don't you skip the pinching and let yourself stay asleep? Wouldn't want to ruin a good dream, now would you?

Sorry about the late update. I got busy, I forgot about the story, school came, other stories were born, different things were demanded, and I got placed in a taffy puller with all the crap I needed to do!

Good [Bad?] News though!

We're almost done! ^_^ We've almost made it!

Just another chapter or two, and we've made it!

Now, without further ado, pull out your hookah and grab your caterpillar and take a seat and a smoke, and enjoy the chapter. [Sorry we did Alice in Wonderland for our school play this past year.]

**Disclaimer: I still do not own Yu-Gi-Oh.**

"_I need your help!"_

"_Wh…What?"_

"_You're the only one that can save us now! Please, you need to save us!"_

"_Save you? From what?"_

"_Save us, please! Save us!"_

**Chapter 8: The End Is Approaching**

"Ugh…" There was a terrible throbbing at his temples, like someone had so kindly decided to take a hammer and repeatedly wail at his head with it. He pressed his palm against his forehead, kneading it into it as if it would do any help at relieving the throbs. He sat up slowly, forcing his eyes open, but shutting them just as quickly as the world roiled viciously and the light blinded him.

As he struggled to right himself, he became aware of voices… Plural, meaning not just the normal one. Was it… Yugi? And… Malik?

"You alright there Bakura?" Malik and Yugi seemed to both be as far away from the couch he was lying on as physically possible, yet also close enough to seem as though they cared.

"Yeah," He answered. "Just a wicked headache. What happened…?" He cracked his eyes open, looking at the other two.

They were sharing a look of their own, before turning back to him. He watched as Yugi's eyes flickered from amethyst to crimson, the subtle sign that the Pharaoh, Yami, had taken control of the shared body.

"Don't you remember?" Yami asked cautiously, not approaching him yet not moving away either. "What happened earlier, down at the docks? With Helena?" He shook his head. He couldn't remember any of it. Helena? He had to think for a moment before he remembered that Helena was the new member of their class.

"No, I don't." He told them. "Why, did something important happen?" He received a vague,

"Something." As a reply from Malik.

"Wait…" It was Yugi now. "Ryou, is that you?"

Ryou nodded, though he wasn't sure why they would've thought he wasn't. Wait, Ryou remembered why they were acting like this now. They normally acted like this when they expected yami [_his _yami, not Yugi's yami] to be in possession of his body. Which, now that he thought about it, yami hadn't said anything. Normally he would've had some sort of snide remark of some form or another to make towards Yami by now, but he hadn't said a word.

Ryou gave Yugi a vague nod to show that yes, it was Ryou in control, while he was preoccupied with discerning the location of his yami, searching his mind.

_/Yami?/ _He calledout in their shared mind. /_Are you there?/_

Silence. Ryou told himself not to panic, not to worry. After all, Bakura had pulled these jokes before on him, and anyways, hadn't he always wanted his head to himself? Didn't he always want to be rid of Bakura, that way he wouldn't be waking up in random places with no idea of how he had gotten there? Didn't he want the peace of mind that came with knowing he wouldn't wake up in a bedroom full of occult related things that had been acquired by who-knows-what-means from who-knows-where?

No. He had to worry, because he knew this wasn't a joke. Normally, he could feel some sort of presence from the Ring saying that, yes, Bakura _was _there, but the Ring was just… cold. Lifeless. And something felt… _wrong_ with the idea of Bakura not being there, like a tearing at the very core of his being that said that no matter what he said, he would need Bakura, otherwise something would become very wrong with the very fiber of his being.

"What happened?" Ryou forced himself to stay calm as he repeated his question. He had to be calm, and at the same time seem like he wasn't worried about his yami, even though he was. Yugi and Malik would never understand. "Tell me, please."

He wanted to know what happened. He wanted to help, to fix it. He didn't want to be another figurine to be thrown off to the side of the playing board once his usefulness was deemed to be achieved. He wanted to actually do something! He wanted…

He wanted to save his yami.

And, to his luck, Yugi and Malik abided by what he asked, and told him.

Ryou's mind spun around what he was told, once Yugi and Malik finished their grim second-hand accounts on what happened. There had to be a way to fix this, to get his yami back, to save the girl whose body was no doubt being usurped against her will. Ryou had to do _something._

Yugi and Malik talked quietly among themselves about figuring out a plan and stopping the girl, and while they did that, Ryou thought.

_What would his yami do? How would he go about getting him back?_ Ryou thought and thought, and the one conclusion kept jumping back to him.

Shadow Game. _Shadow Game._ _**Shadow Game. Wager soul for soul, in a game that would give the winning side the outcome they desired.**_

But what did Ryou want? He wanted to save his yami, right?

No, that wasn't just it.

"_Please save me!"_

"_Help us!"_

"_Please, somebody!"_

Those… Those _voices_ that he had heard echoing through the darkness- he was doing it for them to. To save them. To free them.

"I think I should…" Yami was saying, as Ryou stood up from the chair and announced in an oddly brave voice [which shocked even him],

"I'm going to challenge her to a Shadow Game."

_**X.x.X.x.X**_

_Darkness was swirling at his fingertips. He could feel it brushing against his legs, wrapping up him in an odd cocoon type way, driving his awareness away, letting him slip away into the absoluteness. He could feel his eyelids growing heavy, slipping shut, darkness starting to choke around his neck when…_

"_**Help!"**_ _His eyes snapped open, and the Darkness recoiled away as he stumbled towards the general area where the voice had come from._

"_**Somebody, please help!"**__ Another voice called out from a different direction, causing him to stop._

"_**Save us, please!"**__ Two voices called out in unison, from more directions. What was this? Where were all these voices coming from?_

"_**Please, somebody!"**__ They all called out, voices sounding pained._

_They needed help… He needed to go find help for them… But wait, why couldn't he help them himself? He was there wasn't he? Why did he need to go to someone else for help? He could stand on his own two feet and help them himself, couldn't he?_

_But then, he was tired, and it was too tempting to lull away into the darkness like, no doubt, the ones before him who were shouting for salvation and help._

_He had to help them, he just had to! But first, before he could save them, he had to save himself and get himself out of the very same trap that they had gotten themselves caught in. How could he do that though?_

_Lucky him though, he didn't have to ponder it too long, for as the lost souls cried,_

"_**Save us, please! Save us somebody!"**_

_Another voice cried out a raucous sounding battle cry, and Ryou found himself being catapulted away from the Darkness and slipping back into awareness._

_**X.x.X.x.X**_

They were standing across from each other, fists tightly clenched, bystanders standing by, waiting to see what the outcome would be. Waiting to hear the first words said.

Finally, the silence was broken.

"_I challenge you to a __**Shadow Game."**_ A smirk in response, a contemptuous flip of the hair, and the bat of eyelashes. The visage of someone clearly underestimating their opponent.

"_I __**accept."**_ The words seemed to echo as the Shadows enveloped the two and the bystanders, shrouding them as they entered the deadly game.

"_**Game Start."**_

_**X.x.X.x.X**_

A shadow game! Who would've thunk it? Nah, you all were probably waiting for it, as you really can't have a Yu-Gi-Oh fic without a Shadow Game- it'd be like ice cream without nuts. [Meaning? It's possible, but poison really itches... Wait- what?]

I've actually had this Shadow Game planned from the start; I wanted to do this particular shadow game since I got the story idea forever ago. I'm hoping I can get another update within two weeks, but I'm not making promises, 'kay?

And, also, I'm in a sharing-is-caring mood. I care about you guys a lot, so do you want to share my poison? *Digs open ankles* It's really fun, promise! You won't be able to sleep, it burns so much! XP

Thanks for taking the time to read, so please review and tell me what you think! ^_^

~~Paw-Chan Signing Out~~


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